Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) shares gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $248.16, but opened at $257.55. Norfolk Southern shares last traded at $255.67, with a volume of 318,288 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Susquehanna upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Benchmark raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $266.17.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 4.0 %

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $248.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $236.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.95 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $245.15 per share, with a total value of $171,605.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,887,655. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,887,655. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 4,772 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,216,000 after buying an additional 207 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Evanson Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter worth $211,000. Chemistry Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Chemistry Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,551 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,160,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 15.6% during the first quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC now owns 20,594 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,249,000 after buying an additional 2,773 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

About Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods in the United States. The company transports agriculture, forest, and consumer products comprising soybeans, wheat, corn, fertilizers, livestock and poultry feed, food products, food oils, flour, sweeteners, ethanol, lumber and wood products, pulp board and paper products, wood fibers, wood pulp, beverages, and canned goods; chemicals consist of sulfur and related chemicals, petroleum products comprising crude oil, chlorine and bleaching compounds, plastics, rubber, industrial chemicals, chemical wastes, sand, and natural gas liquids; metals and construction materials, such as steel, aluminum products, machinery, scrap metals, cement, aggregates, minerals, clay, transportation equipment, and military-related products; and automotive, including finished motor vehicles and automotive parts, as well as coal.